Mini Review-Qualitative Review on the Causes of Low Birth Weight

Object - To review the literatures on the causes of low birth weight. Method- On the Pub Med and Ichushi (Japan Medical Abstracts Society) websites, the literatures on the causes of low birth weight published between 1975 to 2011 were searched. Results- From among the 469 original articles retrieved, 65 articles containing any description of the cause of low birth weight were identified, of which the 32 articles well-structured in the format of scientific writing were selected and reviewed. Conclusion- The suspected causes of low birth weight from pre-pregnancy risks were classified into two categories- a) Family risk factors, b) Mother herself risk factors. Further large-scale follow-up studies from birth would be needed at the prefectural level.